Dangerous Illusions
by lunar47
Summary: Oliver finds it hard to keep up appearances when he asks Felicity to be his fake girlfriend for an investors dinner.


She was good. A little too good if you asked him. And that was the problem. Oliver and Felicity were currently seated at one of Starling City's finest restaurants entertaining investors. It had been a whole ordeal getting Queen Consolidated back in his name but now that it was he had to try to build it back into the proud company it once was.

But it wasn't just an investor's dinner. They brought their wives and husbands to socialize. It was one of those kinds of events. So Oliver didn't dare turn up alone. He thought about bringing Laurel. She was the neutral choice. But she didn't know QC quite like Felicity Smoak did.

She was a bit confused at first at the invitation to join him for dinner. "Is this like a date?"

"No," He said quickly. "I need a girlfriend."

"You need a girlfriend but this isn't a date," Felicity's eyes narrowed.

"I need someone to help mingle with investors tonight, you in?"

"And you thought I would be your best option. I don't know if I can do schmoozing."

"I have every confidence in you." Oliver replied sincerely.

She took a moment to contemplate the offer and then asked, "Do I get to wear a fancy dress?"

"If it would help fit the part."

"Then sure I'll be your fake girlfriend for the night." She considered what she just said and added "Don't read any more into what I just said."

So here they were sitting side by side, a little too near for Oliver's comfort. She played the part of the fake girlfriend well. She laughed at his admittedly poor jokes, leaned into him and pressed her bare shoulder against his suited one, ghosted her fingers across his wrist until his whole body shivered. He could smell her light floral perfume and it sent his heart racing.

This was bad. This was very bad. Oliver couldn't afford to develop feelings for his quirky hacker. It was enough that he admitted that he needed help when it came to Arrow business. But to love Felicity, openly, would put her in danger. She would be a target for any villain looking to exploit Oliver's weaknesses.

So he tried to put a damper on the butterflies in his stomach whenever he looked at her lately. Tonight was just making it worse. Felicity was deep in conversation with a woman to her left. Oliver tried keeping up with the discussion around him but his eyes were drawn to her profile, the long line of her smooth neck, her silky blond hair. She opted for contacts tonight and he found himself missing her signature glasses. They added character to her lovely face.

She must have felt him staring at her because she turned to face him and she was oh so close. His eyes flicked to her lips before immediately making a beeline for his dinner plate.

"Are you okay?" She asked innocently.

"Fine," He coughed to clear his throat.

And so it went for the whole evening. The meal was a success on the investor front and he had to thank Felicity for her part in making him seem like a trustworthy guy again. They're on their way to Felicity's place in a hired car. She seemed relaxed as she stared out the window at the passing city; her hair was down from the clips that once held it in a bun and her eyes were slightly heavy lidded from the two glasses of wine she had at dinner. He can't afford to look at her so he checked the messages on his phone instead.

When they got to her apartment he hopped out of the car with her and walked her to the front of the building.

"That was fun. Thank you for taking me. I enjoyed being your not-girlfriend."

"You're welcome."

"You know if this was a date this would be the part where you kissed me goodnight." She smiled that dorky smile of hers and blushed at her boldness.

He couldn't do it though, even though he wanted to. Oh did he want to. But he could compromise. Oliver ran his hand down her arm, leaned in and kissed her cheek. "Goodnight Felicity."

He heard her suck in a breath, "Goodnight Oliver. I'll see you tomorrow." She turned and walked in to her building.

He made his way slowly back to the waiting car, hands in his pockets. The situation with Felicity was confusing and rapidly becoming more complicated. But maybe it was just on his end. He could tell, sort of, how she felt. She flirted enough with him to let him know that she liked him as more than a friend and colleague. But what was he saying; he shouldn't even be entertaining these thoughts.

The car took him back home where he would try his best to not think about Felicity Smoak for the rest of the night.


End file.
